


The Runaway Bunny

by just_a_hungry_author



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst and Feels, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Comfort/Angst, Easter, Fluff and Angst, He gets helped by an old black woman, Heavy Angst, Hurt Morgan Stark, Morgan Stark Needs a Hug (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Morgan Stark are Siblings (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker Whump, Peter Parker is a Mess, Peter runs away, Precious Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Precious Peter Parker, Protective Tony Stark, Runaway, Things go zero to one hundred real quick, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Zero to one hundred, its great
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-12
Updated: 2020-04-12
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:00:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,900
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23616370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/just_a_hungry_author/pseuds/just_a_hungry_author
Summary: Peter fucked up.Peter fucked upbad.He didn't know if he should call an ambulance, or just try and carry her to the hospital, but it was bad.It didn't help that he couldn't hear himself think over the sound of the crying.He was so screwed.Rated T for language.
Relationships: Peter Parker & Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Peter Parker & Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe) & Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Tony Stark & Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 255





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to the first part of this multi-chapter work! Please enjoy!
> 
> Also, minor graphic injury description and blood warning.

Peter fucked up. 

Peter fucked up _bad_. 

He didn't know if he should call an ambulance, or just try and carry her to the hospital, but it was bad. 

It didn't help that he couldn't hear himself think over the sound of the crying. 

He was so screwed. 

_Three hours earlier._

"Bye, Mister Stark!" Peter called out to the driveway, "Have fun on your trip!" 

"Yeah," Tony replied sarcastically, slamming the trunk shut. "I'll have so much fun on this business trip." 

He made his way back up to the porch and hugged Peter. "Take good care of Morgan."

"Of course." Peter said. 

"And call me if anything happens." 

"Come on Mister Stark, has anything _ever_ happened?" 

"You know what I mean, Pete." Tony lectured. "If she gets sick or something. Or if _you_ get sick for that matter. You call me." 

Peter just nodded as he hugged his mentor goodbye again. 

"See you in a few days." 

Things went smoothly at first. 

Peter used the amazing chef-skills he'd obtained from watching Chopped and Masterchef to prepare a dinner of chicken nuggets and Kraft mac-and-cheese.

They ate dinner and Peter, deciding that he would be responsible, at least for the first night, started to work on his homework. 

Morgan left him to do so, but she quickly grew bored and after an hour, she made her way back into the living room. 

She hopped up onto the couch next to Peter. 

"Hi Petey!" 

Peter chuckled and turned away from the questions he was answering. 

"What's up?" 

"Let's play together!" 

Peter glanced back at his laptop screen. 

He had two more questions to answer and then he wouldn't have to worry about any more homework for the rest of the weekend. 

"Can I finish first?" He asked. 

"That's gonna take foreverrrrr." Morgan whined. 

Peter looked at his screen again. 

He'd probably forget to come back and finish the questions if he stopped now. 

Sighing, he turned back to Morgan.

"How about you put your toys away, and then when you're done we can play?" 

Morgan looked at the toys that were on the floor from when she had been playing earlier. 

Just some dolls and Legos, but still far too many items for Morgan to want to put away. 

"I wanna play now." She said. "We never play together." 

"We played together earlier, Morgs." 

"Yeah but when you go back to college we won't get to play." She replied. 

Then she moved closer and put her arms around Peter's neck. "I miss you when you're at college." 

Okay, cue the melting heart.

Who could say no to that?

"Alright, alright." He said, shutting the laptop and giving in. "What do you want to play?" 

"Piggyback ride!" 

Peter chuckled and got down onto the floor in front of the couch. "Alright, climb on." 

Morgan positioned herself on his shoulders and Peter stood, carefully balancing her. 

"Ready?" He asked. 

"Ready!" Morgan replied. 

With that Peter took off on a light jog around the house, Morgan laughing as she told him which direction to go. 

Things had been fine for the first few minutes, but something started buzzing in the back of Peter's mind as they reentered the living room. 

It took him a moment to realize it was his Spider-sense, but he couldn't figure out why. 

He glanced at the window and the door. 

Both were locked and there was nobody outside, so why-? 

"Peter!" Morgan exclaimed. 

Right as she yelled, Peter stepped on one of Morgan's dolls that had been laying on the floor. 

The doll moved under him and he slipped, falling forward. 

He started realizing what was about to happen as he fell, but it was too late for him to do anything. 

"Morgan!" 

It seemed to play out in slow motion. 

Peter had hit the ground, but Morgan came tumbling off of his shoulders. 

He looked up just in time to see her fall into the glass table, and the whole thing shattered around her. 

The first thing Peter's mind processed was the crying. 

Morgan was wailing, and he was still on the ground. 

The next thing he noticed was the blood.

Blood? Fuck. 

Standing quickly, Peter ran over to Morgan and picked her up, trying to avoid stepping on the glass.

"Ow, ow, ow!" Morgan cried. 

The back of her shirt and left leg were quickly becoming damp with blood, and Peter started to panic. 

"Morgan, you're gonna be fine, alright? You're gonna be fine." 

Although, he wasn't sure whether he was trying to convince her or himself. 

He put her on the couch, laying her down on her stomach. 

"I'll be right back." 

Peter ran to the bathroom to grab a towel and sprinted back to the living room. 

He lifted Morgan's shirt and lowered the left side of her leggings so he could assess the damage, and he instantly recoiled at the wound. 

The gash was deep and jagged, and blood was pouring from it quickly.

He pressed the towel up against it in an attempt to stop the bleeding but soon realized that it wasn't slowing. 

Fuck, they were going to need to go to the hospital. 

Morgan was probably going to need stitches. 

Oh, he had fucked up. 

Trying to keep his voice steady so as not to panic her, he looked at Morgan and said, "Okay, we're gonna go to a doctor, alright?" 

"Why?" Morgan asked through the tears. 

"Because we don't have any Band-AIDS here." Peter lied. "We have to go to the doctor to get some." 

"I don't wanna." 

"I know you don't, but we have to, okay?" 

Closing her eyes, Morgan nodded. 

Opting to grab the girl a blanket instead of trying to put her coat on her, Peter went to the linen closet. 

He pulled on his shoes quickly, grabbed Morgan's, and pulled a blanket out. 

He made his way back to the couch and pulled out his phone to call an Uber. 

He then quickly put Morgan's shoes on her feet and within ten minutes, they were in a car on the way to the hospital. 

Peter burst into the emergency room and made his way up to the reception window. 

"I need a doctor." He said. 

The receptionist began her spiel about how they needed to fill out forms and sit in the waiting room, but after looking up and seeing both the blood-stained towel and the sheer _youth_ of the two people in front of her, she quickly abandoned that routine. 

"What happened?" She asked, already pressing the call button to get a gurney and a doctor in the room. 

"She fell through a glass table." Peter replied. "I can't get the bleeding to stop." 

Peter felt Morgan tense at this, but the girl didn't say anything. 

The gurney arrived quickly and Peter had to repeat the situation to the doctor, who had put Morgan on the stretcher. 

"Hi, sweetie." He said calmly. "I'm Doctor Daniel. I'm gonna take you back so we can fix your boo-boo, okay?" 

Morgan didn't say anything to the doctor, instead looking at Peter. 

"You're coming, right?" 

"Of course." Peter said, grabbing her hand. 

He looked at the doctor to be sure that it was okay.

The doctor nodded but frowned as they started to make their way down the hallway. 

"Son," He started, "Where are your parents?" 

Peter's heart stopped. 

Oh, God. Tony.

How was he gonna tell Tony?

Especially when _he_ had caused it.

"O-On a business trip." Peter replied, his chest tight. "B-But I'm eighteen, so I'm acting on her behalf. I-I can do that, right?" 

"Not if a court hasn't given you custody." The doctor explained. "We're going to have to call them." 

It felt like lead had filled Peter's stomach. 

"Okay." He said dreadfully. 

He knew that he would have to tell Tony _eventually_ , but he hadn't expected it to be so soon. 

He'd been hoping they could at least wait until after the stitches were done. 

Tony was going to kill him. 

Forty five minutes later, Morgan was asleep in a hospital bed, an ice pack strapped to her newly obtained stitches. 

She'd needed nine of them, and Peter held her hand the whole time. 

She seemed to be doing well, despite what she'd been through. 

Peter, however, was not. 

His mind was racing, thinking of all the things that were bound to happen. 

How disappointed Tony would be, how upset he would be. 

And then there was Pepper- oh God, he'd scarred her only daughter. 

So bad that she needed to go to the hospital and get _stitches_. 

They were going to kill him. 

They were probably going to disown him and send him back to college and never let him see Morgan again, let alone come over to their house. 

What if he never saw Tony again? 

What if he was stripped of his Avenger status? 

What if Tony made him stop being Spider-Man all together? 

His spiraling was momentarily paused when the nurse walked into the room. 

"Hi, sweetheart." She said. "I wanted to let you know that your parents just checked in. They'll be on their way up once they get through security." 

The nurse left as quickly as she had come, and Peter felt his chest tighten. 

Oh, God. 

Tony was here. 

Tony was here and he had no idea what he was going to say. 

How could he explain this? 

How could he explain _hurting_ Morgan? 

His breath started to quicken and Peter suddenly felt like he was suffocating. 

An enormous weight had settled on his chest and made it hard to breathe, almost like he was having an asthma attack.

He had to get out.

He couldn't face Tony. 

Not like this. 

Not now.

He managed to control himself enough to leave the room without drawing any attention, but once he was in the stairwell he ran. 

He ran down the stairs and out of one of the fire-exits, and then he ran down the street. 

He ran, and ran, and ran. 

And he didn't look back.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter gets some help from an unexpected someone. 
> 
> This one’s a little bit shorter.

Peter finally slowed down after what felt like hours. 

He collapsed onto the ground in an alleyway and gave himself a moment to catch his breath. 

Tony, Morgan, Pepper... they were all going to be so upset. 

They probably hated him. 

Shoving that thought aside for the moment, Peter glanced up, realizing he didn't know where he was. 

He stood shakily and walked to the edge of the alley, trying to look for a familiar building or street sign. 

Everything seemed foreign to him. 

In fact, he thought he might even remember having run across a bridge, but he wasn't entirely sure.

Peter sighed and ran a hand through his hair. 

"Well," He said aloud, "This is what we're doing, I guess." 

He began to walk along the road, looking for... something, though he wasn't sure what. 

On instinct he reached into his pocket, but he realized his phone wasn't there. 

He'd left it charging in Morgan's hospital room.

'Morgan's hospital room.'

God, just those words made him feel sick.

Peter didn't mourn the loss of the phone, in fact he was glad he'd left it behind. 

It'd be much easier for Tony to track him if he had his phone. 

And he couldn't face Tony. 

At least, not yet. 

Peter walked in no particular direction, making random turns until he felt too weak to walk anymore.

He hadn't eaten since dinner, and he guessed it had been at least three hours since then. 

Coupled with the run he'd just gone on and the stress of the evening, he was extremely shaky. 

Luckily for him, the bench he'd decided to take a break on was right across from a Soup Kitchen. 

‘Soup Kitchen?’ Peter thought.

Food.

 _Free_ food.

Peter stood and made his way across the street.

The inside of the cinderblock building was warm, and the smell of the food made Peter's mouth water. 

The room wasn't very big, but there were lines of tables that reminded Peter of a cafeteria. 

There was chatter among the families who were sitting at the tables, specifically those with younger kids, but not much. 

At the back of the room was a horizontal table with metal trays of food. 

There were four people behind the table, all with hairnets and gloves on. 

There was a small line of about five people waiting to be served, so Peter joined them. 

When it came to be his turn, the woman serving him gave him a look he couldn't quite place. 

It didn't look like sympathy. 

It looked confused and questionable and... concerned? 

Swallowing the lump of anxiety that had formed in his throat, he moved along the table as she loaded his plate with what they were serving that night.

There was what Peter thought was a type of stew that had steak, potatoes, carrots, and green beans in it, with sides of white rice and spinach, and he was given a bottle of water. 

He thanked the woman and made his way over to a table in the far left corner, eating in silence. 

He was practically finished with his plate when somebody sat down across from him with their own plate. 

Looking up, he realized it was the woman who had served him. 

She looked older, maybe in her forties or fifties, and her hair was tied up. 

She was no longer wearing the hairnet or the gloves, and she was smiling at him. 

If Peter had to guess, he would've said she was Jamaican. 

"Hi baby," She started. "Do you mind if I sit here?" 

"No." Peter replied. 

He tried to leave the conversation at that by looking back down at his plate, but there was no food left on it, so it wasn't much of a distraction. 

"If you don't mind me saying," the woman continued, "You don't look like you belong here." 

Peter looked up, but he didn't say anything. 

"No offense." The woman continued. "Most of the kids who come in here look like troublemakers, either that or they're too young to know what's going on and they're with their parents. But you? You look so... _innocent_. Like you ain't never been on the street a day in your life." 

Peter again didn't say anything, but he blushed as his stomach rumbled.

"You still hungry, Sugar?" 

Sheepishly, Peter nodded. 

With his metabolism, one plateful wasn't enough. 

Especially not after that run. 

"Here." The woman said, pushing her plate to him. 

"No, no." Peter started, "That's yours, I don't want to take your-"

"I got it for you, sweetpea. I couldn't stand seeing you sit in the corner all by yourself." 

She pushed her plate closer to him. 

"I swiped an apple juice for you too."

Peter smiled at the gesture. 

"Thanks. I'm Peter by the way." 

"Irene." The woman said with a smile. 

They were quiet for a few minutes while Peter continued to eat. 

Once he was done, he looked back up at Irene. 

"Thanks." Peter said again. 

"Anytime." Irene replied. 

With that Peter stood up to throw out his plate. 

For a moment, Irene felt a pang in her chest, and she wanted to stop him, though she couldn't explain why. 

The teen gave her a small smile as he walked out the door, and then he was gone. 

Irene needed to take out the trash before she left, so she grabbed the garbage bags and headed outside, her thoughts still dwelling on Peter. 

She felt sorry for the boy.

As she had said- he didn't look like the type of kid you see out on the streets. 

She most certainly didn't expect to see him in the alleyway that the dumpster was in. 

She turned the corner to see Peter sitting at the far end of the alley, knees pulled up to his chest. 

He looked small and frail, curled up in the dark, and Irene felt that pang in her chest again. 

She walked towards him slowly so as not to startle him. 

"Peter?" 

Peter looked up, eyes watery. 

Irene knelt down beside him and frowned. 

"You got nowhere to go, baby?" 

Peter's breath hitched. 

Of course he had nowhere to go, he didn't even know where he was. 

But it hit so much harder hearing it out loud. 

"N-no. I have nowhere to go." 

"Alright, let's go." Irene said, standing up. 

Peter looked up at her, eyes wide with confusion. 

"You can spend the night with me." Irene said. 

Sure, taking in a strange kid from the soup kitchen probably wasn't the _best_ idea, but Irene could tell that Peter was no threat. 

He didn't look like a typical runaway, and he seemed scared out of his mind. 

"A-are you sure?" Peter asked. "I'll be all good here. And if not I can find a homeless shelter, or a bench..." 

"Mm-mm." Irene said, shaking her head. "You're not sleeping out on the street tonight, not if I can help it."

She held out her hand and Peter accepted the help up. 

"I just need to tidy a few things in the kitchen and then we'll be off."

Irene's house was a decent size, and the inside was very cozy. 

It smelled of vanilla sugar, and the lights were soft. 

The first room they'd gone into upon entering was the living room, and directly behind it was a kitchen, the two rooms separated by a counter. To the right of the kitchen was a large dining room, and there was a set of stairs to the right of the front door. 

There were framed family pictures all over the walls, and all of the furniture looked soft and plush. 

"Your home is beautiful." Peter said. 

Irene smiled. "Thank you. I think the love really helps pull it all together." 

Peter couldn't deny it, he _did_ feel loved... despite the crummy thing he'd done. 

Peter sighed and sat down on the couch as the memories came flooding back to him. 

Irene frowned at the sudden change in Peter's behavior. 

"I'm gonna grab you a blanket and pillows, hon. I'll be right back." 

When Irene returned, Peter was standing by the fireplace, looking at some of the photos hung above it. 

"Is this your family?" He asked. 

She set the blanket and pillow down on the couch and walked up next to him. 

"Yes," She answered lovingly. 

She pointed at one of the pictures, which was a graduation photo. 

"This is my baby, Aaron. He's at college right now, studying to be a doctor." 

She pointed to another picture. 

This one was of a young girl, around nine or ten. 

"And this is my goddaughter, Samiyah. Just yesterday she started selling Girl Scout cookies." 

Peter looked to a picture of a large family gathering, Irene standing in the middle. 

Everyone in the picture was smiling or laughing. 

"Your family is beautiful." He said. "You look like you all love each other so much. Like you could never..." 

He faltered. "Like you could never hurt each other." 

Irene put her hand on his shoulder. "What about your family, baby?" 

Peter sighed. "It's complicated." 

"So you've got a family then? You're not on your own?" 

"I am now." Peter lamented. "I... I can't go back." 

"Do they know where you are?"

Peter shook his head. 

"Sweetie, you should call them, just to let them know you're okay." 

"I can't talk to them." Peter said, moving to sit on the couch. "I can't." 

"They're probably worried." 

Peter shook his head again. "I can't."

Irene rubbed his shoulder. "Let's not talk about this now. You should get some sleep. Did you wanna brush your teeth?" 

"Uh, if I could?" Peter said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I don't have a toothbrush with me..." 

"I have extras in case I come across someone who needs one." Irene replied. "The bathroom is upstairs, the first door on the right."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here we go, it’s angst and comfort time.

Peter couldn't remember the last time he'd slept that hard. 

He didn't know if it was the stress of the day, or how low his blood-sugar had dipped earlier, or just the pure comfort he felt in Irene's house, but as soon as he'd crawled under that large, fluffy, lion blanket he'd been given, he was out like a light. 

He was warm, he didn't dream, and he even had a little bit of drool at the corner of his lip. 

He woke to the smell of cooking bacon wafting through the air. 

Peter sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. 

"Morning, Sugar." Irene said when she saw him sit up. 

"Good morning." Peter replied. 

"Come sit. Breakfast is almost ready." 

Peter sat at the table and Irene walked over holding two plates. 

She placed one at her spot at the table and one in front of Peter. 

Each plate had eggs, a slice of toast, a few strips of bacon, and a scooping of homefries. 

"Do you want a smoothie, Peter?" 

"Yes, please." 

Irene moved to the kitchen and returned to the table with a strawberry smoothie. 

She gave it to the teen as she sat down.

"So Honey," She started, "How old are you?" 

"I'm eighteen." Peter replied. 

"And where are you from?" 

"Queens." 

"Queens?" Irene asked in shock. "Baby, you're in Rochester. How did you end up all the way out here?"

"I... I ran away." 

"Why?" 

Peter cringed. "I... did something. Something bad." 

"Like getting-arrested bad?" 

"No." 

"Did you get in trouble at school?" 

"No." 

"So in trouble with your family then?" 

Peter hesitated. "N-no." 

"So in trouble with your family then." Irene repeated, but this time it wasn't a question. "What did you do?" 

Peter's breath hitched as images flooded his mind. 

Crying.

Blood. 

The gash in Morgan's back.

Irene reached out and put her hand on Peter's arm, rubbing it comfortingly. 

"Baby, if you don't talk about it, you'll never get through it. You gotta get it out." 

"I... I hurt someone." Peter said, a tear making its way down his face. "Someone I care about." 

"On purpose?" 

Peter shook his head. 

"Well if it was an accident..." 

"No, you don't understand." Peter said, more tears starting to pour. "I hurt her bad. She's in the hospital. Her dad wasn't even home."

"Do you know if she's going to be okay?"

"She is, but that's not the point. I _hurt_ her. I _hurt_ my little sister. And her dad is gonna be so mad at me. He'll probably throw me out and won't let me visit anymore and then I'll never see any of them again and-"

"Woah, Peter." Irene interrupted. "You're spiraling. So... her dad doesn't know what happened?" 

"H-he does." Peter said, taking a breath. "The hospital called him. He checked in and was on his way up to her room but... I couldn't face him. What was I supposed to say? I _hurt_ his daughter." 

It was then that Peter really broke down and started sobbing, and Irene _melted_. 

This boy... this innocent looking boy was carrying such a heavy weight on his shoulders, and he'd rather run away than face it. 

She couldn't stand seeing tears in those big brown eyes of his. 

She stood and moved to his side of the table, hugging him tight. 

Peter hugged back, and slowly, he stopped crying. 

"So, your family doesn't know where you are?" Irene asked, though it was a redundant question. 

Peter shook his head. 

"Look baby," Irene said, "Finish your breakfast, okay? I'll drive you back to the city." 

"You don't have to-"

"Hush." She interrupted. "Eat. I'm driving you back." 

Peter's breath hitched as they pulled up to the hospital. 

Irene had sensed the teen getting more anxious as they got closer to their destination, but now that they'd arrived, he looked like he was on the verge of a panic attack. 

His eyes were starting to water and he'd been ringing his hands together for the past ten minutes. 

"Do you want me to go in with you?" She asked. 

Peter looked at Irene, eyes pleading. "Would you?" 

Irene's heart shattered when she heard how small Peter sounded. 

"Of course, baby. And I promise, her dad isn't going to do a thing to you. If he tries, I'll knock him on his ass."

Peter timidly approached the door to Morgan's hospital room. 

There were those words again. 

'Morgan's hospital room.' 

Peter stopped, his breathing starting to quicken.

Irene put her hand on his shoulder.

"Calm down, Sugar." She said. "Take a breath, and then step inside." 

Peter took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds, then willed himself forward as he stepped inside. 

Morgan was laying in bed, facing away from the door. 

Tony was sitting in a chair nearby, his head on his hand, typing something on his phone. 

It took him a moment to register that someone had come into the room, but once he did- 

"Peter?" 

Tony jumped out of his chair. 

"Peter! Peter! Oh, thank God!" 

He ran over and hugged him, not noticing how tense the teen became under his grip. 

"Where have you been? I've been worried sick!" 

For a second his worry turned to anger. 

"Where have you been?" 

"I... I..." 

"How could you just run off like that? You _literally_ ran off! I had FRIDAY track you for ten or so miles but you went into a dark zone after that. Do you know how irresponsible that was?" 

"Mister Stark, I... I..." 

It was at that moment when Irene stepped into the room. 

She moved straight to Peter's side, not even taken back that the man Peter was talking to was Tony Stark. 

"Hold on there a second." She said defensively.

Tony, on the other hand, _was_ taken aback. 

"Who are you?" 

"I've been taking care of Peter for the past couple of days." Irene said. "Now you listen good. This boy has been scared half to death to come back here and talk to you, so you best give him a moment to explain himself instead of getting in his face." 

Tony, confused, turned his attention to Peter. 

"Scared?"

Taking a better look at Peter, Tony saw that he was pale and trembling, not to mention his eyes were red and threatening to overflow with tears. 

"Pete?" He said, his tone immediately softening. "Pete, what's been going on?" 

"-'m sorry." Peter said, voice shaking. "I'm sorry... 'm sorry." 

His voice gave out on him on his third 'I'm sorry', and heart shatteringly to Tony, he turned into Irene's shoulder and started sobbing.

Irene's, not his.

Irene wrapped an arm around Peter as a million thoughts ran through Tony's head. 

The most prominent thought being, 'Why is Peter scared of me?'

"Kid," Tony said, reaching out a hand, though he stopped right before he touched Peter.

He felt like if he touched him, the teen might shatter. 

"Kid, you need to tell me what's wrong." 

"I'm sorry." Peter choked. "I'm sorry." 

"What are you sorry for, Peter?" 

"I hurt her." 

Tony stopped. "What?" 

"I hurt her." 

"Pete, it was an accident-"

"No!" Peter exclaimed, finally turning to make eye contact with Tony. "I hurt her! I was responsible for watching Morgan and I hurt her! I threw her into a table for crying out loud!" 

"Peter-"

"You trusted me with your daughter!" Peter continued. "Your _only_ kid! And she's in the hospital with nine stitches in her back!" 

"Okay, first of all." Tony started, "Morgan is _not_ my only kid." 

He moved forward and placed his hands on Peter's shoulders. 

"And _none_ of this is your fault. I don't blame you for any of it, you hear me? This could've happened with anybody. Cap, Thor, Nat... it could've even been me or Pepper." 

Peter was still sobbing full on, but Tony continued to talk. 

"I _never_ want you to feel like you can't talk to me. You can tell me _anything_ Peter. I don't care if you destroyed all of New York. I'm _never_ going to be mad at you for something you did on accident. _Ever_." 

Tony pulled Peter into a hug and the teen continued to sob into his shoulder. 

Tony started running his fingers through the back of Peter's hair, but Peter only sobbed harder. 

"Listen," Tony started, "Why don't we sit and you can tell me what happened. And I want you to tell me _everything_." 

"I'm gonna go down to the cafeteria and grab a coffee." Irene said softly. "I'll be back up in say, half an hour?" 

Tony nodded and Irene gave Peter's shoulder another squeeze before heading out. 

Tony then led Peter over to a chair and sat him down, leaning Peter's head onto his shoulder. 

"Okay. Start at the beginning." 

Peter, still crying, did his best to explain. 

"I... I was d-doing h-homework and M-Morgan wanted a p-piggyback ride." Peter started, "So w-we were r-running a-around the house and I f-felt m-my s-spider sense." 

"B-but I didn't know w-what the d-danger was. And I t-tripped on a t-toy. I t-tried to hold onto her Tony, I swear, I tried-"

"Shh," Tony shushed, "It's okay. Keep going." 

"S-she f-fell through the t-table, a-and I called an Uber to get to the h-hospital. T-then they said y-you were here a-and I panicked. It f-felt like I couldn't breathe and I didn't know what I was g-gonna say and I... I ran." 

"I don't even know h-how long I ran or w-where I went. I went to a s-soup kitchen and t-that's where I met Irene. She brought me to her house because she didn't want me to sleep out on the street. And then we t-talked and I told h-her what happened, and she convinced me to c-come back here to see you." 

"Peter," Tony said, "Running away is never the answer." 

There was a pause, and Tony brought up another issue. 

"Bud, why did you have a panic attack when you knew I was coming?" 

"B-because I didn't know what to s-say." Peter replied. "I t-thought you'd be m-mad... o-or disappointed." 

Tony hugged Peter as best he could from where they were sitting. "It's alright. And I'm not mad." 

"Peter?" A small voice said. 

Tony and Peter both looked to the bed, where Morgan was laying, eyes now open. 

She looked scared, and though her lip was trembling, she wasn't crying. 

"I'm not mad either." 

"Morgan-" Peter started. 

"I was the one who said we should play piggyback." Morgan interrupted. "And I should've picked up my toys. It's my fault."

"It's neither of your faults." Tony said. "And I don't want to hear either of you blaming yourselves, understand?" 

Morgan nodded, and Tony felt Peter nod against his neck. 

There was a small knock at the door and Tony looked up to see Irene standing there. 

"Can we talk?" She asked. 

Tony nodded and looked between Morgan and Peter. 

"I'll be right back." 

He stood and made his way out into the hall. 

"Peter?" Morgan started. "Will you lay with me?" 

Peter sniffled and wiped at his eyes.

"Sure."

Out in the hall, Irene handed Tony a coffee. 

"Thank you." Tony said. 

"No problem." Irene replied. "Didn't know you had a son." 

"Yeah, I kind of took him under my wing."

"He might as well be yours. He loves you like he's yours." 

"I wanted to thank you for taking care of him. I don't know what I would do if I found out he'd slept out on the street last night." 

Tony paused. 

"And if it wasn't for you, I'm not so sure he would have come back." 

"He would have." Irene comforted. "I believe I helped speed up the process, but he wouldn't have left for good."

There was a pause in the conversation, but Irene spoke again.

"I tried to get him to call you, but he was terrified. But now knowing who you are, I'm surprised you didn't send a SWAT team after him." 

"I tried to track him. He left his phone here and my AI lost him in a crowd while he was running, I was actually in the process of hacking security cameras to see where he went when he walked in."

Tony paused. 

"And... I couldn't act worried in front of Morgan." He said solemnly. "She asked where he was and I had to tell her he was at home... it would've just made things worse if she knew what really happened."

"They both love you a lot." Irene replied. "And trust me, I know love when I see it." 

Tony turned and glanced into the room. 

Peter was laying in bed with Morgan, his arm wrapped around her, and both were asleep. 

Peter's face was still red and slick with tears, and his hair was a tousled, curly mess, but he looked much more peaceful than he had been earlier.

"They love each other a lot, too." Irene added. "And they'll get through it, especially with your help." 

An hour later, Peter and Morgan were sitting up together, watching Gravity Falls while eating hospital food. 

Peter's mood had brightened up considerably since the two had woken up, though Morgan had helped with that by trying to make him smile the whole time. 

"I'll trade you my fruit cup for your cookie." Morgan said without taking her eyes off the tv.

Peter looked over at Morgan. "That's in no way a fair trade." 

"Well it's not fair that you get a cookie and I get a fruit cup." 

Peter smiled and handed over the cookie, but didn't take the fruit cup. 

"Eat the fruit cup before the cookie."

"Okay." 

Morgan went quiet for a moment as she opened her fruit cup, but she looked up at Peter. 

"Peter?" She started, "Why did you run away?" 

Peter looked down at Morgan. 

"How did you-"

"I wasn't really asleep when you were talking to Daddy." Morgan interrupted. "So why did you run away?" 

Peter took a deep breath. "Because I was scared." 

"Did you think you were gonna get in trouble?"

"No, that wasn't it." 

"I get scared when I think I'm gonna get in trouble too." Morgan said. "But I got even more scared when you weren't here." 

Peter put his arm around Morgan. 

"I'm never gonna scare you like that again, okay? I promise." 

"Okay." 

At that moment Tony and Irene walked into the room. 

Tony had his eyes glued to Peter. 

"Morgan, I'm gonna talk to Peter outside, okay?" He said. "Miss Irene is gonna stay with you." 

"Okay." Morgan said with a nod. "Miss Irene, do you like Gravity Falls?" 

"Oh, I love Gravity Falls." Irene replied, sitting in a chair by Morgan's bed. "Wendy is my favorite." 

With that Peter climbed out of the bed and followed Tony out of the room. 

"Peter," Tony started, "We need to talk."

"About what?" 

"About how scared you got when you realized I was coming, and why you got that way." 

"What do you mean?" 

"Peter, don't take this the wrong way, but I think you might have anxiety."

Peter let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. "You do?" 

"Yeah." Tony said, "But Bud, it's nothing to be ashamed of-"

"Ashamed?" Peter started, "Mister Stark, I'm... actually kinda relieved." 

Tony was taken aback. "Relieved?" 

"I've thought I had anxiety for a while now, but I was scared I was making things up." 

"Pete, why didn't you say anything?" 

"Because I wasn't sure." Peter lamented. "And I didn't want to be one of those people who just does stuff for attention."

"Well," Tony started, putting an arm around Peter's shoulder, "We can take you and get you diagnosed for sure, and then we'll see where we go from there, okay?"

Peter nodded. "Thanks, Tony." 

"No problem, Kiddo." 

As Tony and Peter made their way back into the room, Irene stood. 

"I think it's time for me to get going." She said. 

Peter walked over to Irene and hugged her. 

"Thank you for everything." 

Irene rubbed Peter's back. 

"No problem sweetheart. And if you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask." She replied. "I'd love to have you and Morgan come and meet Aaron and Samiyah."

"The same goes to you." Tony said. 

"I couldn't ask that of you-" Irene began. 

"No, I'm serious." Tony interrupted. "I want to sponsor your kids' Christmases and birthdays for at least the next five years, so you better text me." 

Irene hugged Tony. "Thank you."

"No," Tony replied, "Thank you."


	4. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I promise it gets Eastery in this one!

"Peter! Peter! Peter!" Morgan exclaimed. 

Peter turned over with a groan to find Morgan excitedly jumping on him.

Clearly her stitches had healed enough for her to deem it fit to jump on the bed. 

"What?" 

"Peter, get up! The Easter Bunny came!" 

When Peter made no move to get out of bed, Morgan started pulling on his shirt. 

"Wake up, wake up, wake up!" 

"Okay, okay." Peter said, sitting up. "I'm up." 

"Let's go see what the Easter Bunny brought!" 

Peter smiled. "Alright, but only because I'm getting chocolate out of it." 

With that Morgan grabbed Peter's hand and started running out of the room, pulling him along. 

When they made it to the living room, they found two large, colorful baskets. 

Both had a layer of Easter grass, and they were overflowing with colorfully wrapped candy, plastic eggs, and chocolate bunnies. 

Morgan's basket was nestled into the lap of a large stuffed bunny, and Peter's was sitting on top of an unopened LEGO Star Wars set. 

Laying in front of each basket was a kite and a coloring book (an adult one for Peter of course).

Peter got a pack of Prismacolor Premiere pencils with his coloring book, and Morgan got a 64-pack of Crayola crayons with a sharpener. 

"Let's dig in!" Morgan shouted, running over to her basket. 

"Hold it!" Tony exclaimed. 

Peter and Morgan both jumped, they hadn't even known Tony had been standing behind them. 

"Don't you wanna wait for Aaron and Samiyah so you can all have your baskets together?" 

Morgan pouted. "I guess..." 

"Come on, Mister Stark." Peter said, moving over to Morgan and sticking out his bottom lip. "Can't we have one bunny? Today's one of the only days we get to have chocolate for breakfast." 

Morgan looked up at Tony, bringing out her best puppy eyes. "Please, Daddy? I love you." 

"Alright, alright," Tony said, throwing up his hands in mock-surrender. "You can each have a bunny. But I get one bunny-ear each." 

"No way," Peter started, jokingly crossing his arms. "The ears are the best part. _You_ can have the foot." 

Morgan crossed her arms too, imitating Peter. "Yeah, no way." 

Tony ran a hand through his hair. 

"What did I do to deserve this?"

Irene and her family showed up at noon. 

Morgan excitedly let them in when the doorbell rang, hugging Samiyah. 

"Hi Sami!" She said, "Hi Miss Irene! Hi Aaron!" 

"Hey Morgan," Aaron greeted with a smile. "Where's Peter?" 

It was then that Peter made his way into the room. 

"Hi Samiyah." Peter said with a smile. "Hi Irene." 

Irene hugged Peter. "Happy Easter, Sugar." 

"Happy Easter." Peter replied. 

Upon seeing Aaron, they did the signature bro-handshake as a way of greeting.

"What's up, man?" Peter said with a smile. 

"Not much." Aaron replied. "How's college?" 

"Same as usual." 

Tony entered the room next. 

"Hey A-Man!" 

"Hi, Mister Stark." Aaron said. 

Tony walked over to Irene and hugged her, Irene kissing him on the cheek. 

"Hi Samiyah." Tony greeted. "You got my Girl Scout cookies yet?" 

"They come in next week!" Samiyah said happily. 

"Daddy," Morgan started, "Can we play with our Easter stuff now?" 

Tony chuckled. "Sure, Pumpkin." 

Peter looked over to Aaron. "We weren't allowed to touch anything until you guys got here." 

"Oh, we weren't either." Aaron replied. "I had to stop Samiyah from peeking at her basket like fifty times." 

Having been funded by Tony, Samiyah and Aaron's Easter baskets were just as extravagant as Morgan and Peter's.

Irene headed to the kitchen with Tony to help finish preparing dinner while the kids started to look through their baskets. 

Later on in the day, Peter and Aaron set up an Easter egg hunt for Morgan and Samiyah in the yard.

However, Morgan and Samiyah wanted to keep going after they got all the eggs the first time, so Peter and Aaron compensated by making the hunt harder. 

The cycle continued like this until the girls started preaching about unfairness after spotting one egg up a tree in a bird's nest, and another on top of the chimney. 

"How did that even get up there?" Samiyah asked. 

"Peter's really good at climbing." Morgan replied. 

She then winked at Peter, and Peter smiled. 

Aaron had not been with Peter when they were hiding the eggs, so he also had no clue about Peter's secret identity. 

By the time the four of them made their way inside, dinner was ready.

They said grace before they began eating at Irene’s request, and they quickly began to dig in.

Morgan, looking up from her meal, smiled. 

"I know Mommy's not here," she started, "But I think this was the best Easter ever." 

Tony smiled back. "Anything for you, Pumpkin. And don't worry, this Easter was _nothing_ compared to what Christmas will be like."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That’s all! I hope you enjoyed!


End file.
